I think the media should be held to account... what do you think?

[SirRumpole]

With respect Rumpy, the pessimistic outcome is nearer 3% of 50% of the population, although maybe our health system can get it down to the high tens of thousands.
Just remember we get as a minimum a few thousand deaths from the common flu each year, and this virus is variously estimated around 30 times as deadly.

So write us a press release robbie.

 

[qldfrog]

Andrew Probyn on ABC.

There is a looming health "catastrophe" and the public will have to steel themselves that thousands of people will die.

Alarmist ? IMO yes.

If people do the right thing then we should be able to limit the infection, and the media need to get with the program, not needlessly scare people.

Ok @SirRumpole, how about if there are less than 2000 deaths by , i end augusti donate $25 ..if still alive and out of ICU, to Joe fund.
Feel free to do the same with same provision
Based on current gov reaction, thousands of deaths is a given
Only question is should media say it: aka potential panic
Jump in SirRumpole, Joe will not lose on this one

 

[sptrawler]

Like I say...the media has been irresponsible, sensationalist and very loose with the truth and needs to be held to account.

Never going to happen, if anyone tries to hold the media to account, the media just cranks up the vitriol a notch and only reports negative content.
If the Government tries to do anything, it is an attack on freedom of the press, IMO the media will bring about its own demise.
The younger generation are more socially connected via social media, I know talking to my four kids, they are all disconnecting from mainstream media.
So in a lot of ways, the current affairs programmes and normal TV news shows are catering to an older demographic, which is actually dying out.
It also explains why the polls get everything so wrong, they are not researching the larger demographic and are using outdated selection proceedures IMO.
Just my opinion.

 

[banco]

I certainly agree about the cruise ships, that was complete stupidity. My general point about Probyn was that he was putting his own spin on the issue and projecting the most pessimistic outcome instead of reporting the facts and keeping the governments honest about what was actually being done.

It's not the most pessimistic take though. Thousands dead is completely consistent with the famous imperial college report that UK Government (and reportedly US Government) are basing their response on. It's a base case scenario.

 

[SirRumpole]

Ok @SirRumpole, how about if there are less than 2000 deaths by , i end augusti donate $25 ..if still alive and out of ICU, to Joe fund.
Feel free to do the same with same provision
Based on current gov reaction, thousands of deaths is a given
Only question is should media say it: aka potential panic
Jump in SirRumpole, Joe will not lose on this one

Agreed.

 

[qldfrog]

Agreed.

Perfect, and we both hope I lose.If we only have 2k deaths, imho, it would be a major victory

 

[SirRumpole]

Perfect, and we both hope I lose

Ditto.

 

[Smurf1976]

Many other nations have involved their military in a number of ways - what is ours doing?
It's all good and well pouring tens of billions into the economic ramifications, but right now every arm of government should have been mobilised to put in place public and community health measures which would have gone a long way to ameliorating the economic stimuli.

My anecdotal observations is that people are responding to the response not the reason.

They're seeing the problem as "festival is cancelled" or that "nightclub is shut" and are responding with thoughts of ramping up a tourism campaign in lieu of the festival and booking out the local hall and hiring DJ in lieu of the club.

I'm aware of specific examples for both of those and more. People seeing the actions taken to stop the virus spread as the problem, failing to see that those actions are a consequence of the real problem and an attempt to stop it getting worse. Finding ways around them is the last thing we need anyone to be doing.

The masses are, broadly speaking, not accepting the seriousness of this from what I've seen.

What the media needs to do is stick to the facts and communicate what's going on and why it's necessary in straightforward layman's terms.

 

[MovingAverage]

Are you unintelligent?
Scomo appears to be ignoring the best lessons from overseas experiences which have proved successful.
What that has to do with the Liberal Party is anyone's guess.
This is a medical health emergency, not a political crisis.
Scomo is, however, doing his best to be as well regarded as Trump in tackling the issue.
So let's put some flesh on this.
Scomo knew from the recent national bushfires that we had no "national emergency" powers in federal legislation: it's all with the states. What did he do?
Answer: nothing!
So we now have another crisis.
What are the feds doing?
Blaming the states when they get it wrong rather than bringing them all together (electronically) and agreeing on consistent national principles.
We, the public, are being treated a bit like crash test dummies.

You’ve been very critical of the current PM yet all you offer is to sit on the sideline behind your keyboard and post on a stock forum about your personal issues with the LNP using the constant benefit of hindsight. People like you, and there are a lot of people like you in the public, do nothing but move from one issue to another with a constant stream of vitriol and offer absolutely nothing and have certainly done jack to really help advance proper change. You are clearly so arrogant that your own self belief think you know better than the current government. So I ask, how has your pathetic political career gone? I guess it’s just easier to remain a troll spewing force vitriol instead of rolling up your sleeves to make a genuine difference to the public good. I will admit, you make for a good internet troll but suck as a politician

 

[frugal.rock]

Hey guys and gals,
Please keep it civil.

I refused to retort to @InsvestoBoy calling me an idiot, purely because he/ she has the right to one's own opinion as do I.

Let's keep it above the belt.
Cheers.

F.Rock

 

[Joe Blow]

Hey guys and gals,
Please keep it civil.

Let's keep it above the belt.

I agree that these discussions should be kept civil. There's never an excuse for making things personal. The moment someone insults another forum member is the moment that the discussion has ceased being about the topic at hand and inevitably degenerates into a slanging match.

Please keep it civil at all times. Always take the high road.

 

[SirRumpole]

I agree that these discussions should be kept civil. There's never an excuse for making things personal. The moment someone insults another forum member is the moment that the discussion has ceased being about the topic at hand and inevitably degenerates into a slanging match.

Please keep it civil at all times. Always take the high road.

Traffic on the site seems to have increased Joe.

It's an ill wind... as they say.

 

[Joe Blow]

Traffic on the site seems to have increased Joe.

It's an ill wind... as they say.

Yes, traffic is up. So are posts. By quite a bit. Overall it's a problem I don't mind having, even if it does stir up the odd bit of unpleasantness. You kind of have to expect the occasional dummy spit, as long as it doesn't become too common.

 

[Smurf1976]

Please keep it civil at all times. Always take the high road.

Definitely agreed.

I think everyone, both online and in the physical world, needs to bear in mind at all times that many people will be under very considerable mental stress with all this.

Risk of death is the most obvious and drastic one.

Many will lose large amounts of money. That's less drastic than death but still a problem if it turns someone's reasonable retirement into a meager existence for the next 20 years or means that their dream of buying a house or seeing the world is now shattered. It's a major blow to them both practically and psychologically.

Many will see businesses fail or lose their employment. Some will in practice never recover due to lack of capital and inability to gain new employment due to especially age. Plenty ended up like that during previous recessions so odds are this'll be at least as bad.

That virtually everyone will have at least the next 6 months disrupted and not as they'd intended is another.

At a broader level, the probable loss of various "iconic" businesses and perhaps individuals (death) will bring a sense of doom and gloom to many. It only needs some business that everyone's been a customer of or at least knows of and that seemed "too big to fail" to actually fail and that brings a sense of gloom to everyone. Likewise if someone well known and liked passes away due to the virus.

So my thought is, in short, let's look after each other and bear in mind that others we meet, either online or off, may well be under incredible stress at the present time.

 

[rederob]

You’ve been very critical of the current PM yet all you offer is to sit on the sideline behind your keyboard and post on a stock forum about your personal issues with the LNP using the constant benefit of hindsight.

I am critical because I have noted what has been done to be successful, yet even now we have schools open. This is not a benefit of hindsight. And I also said before most people that 2 key safety nets were debt relief and a living wage - you will find my posts date stamped. I have zero "personal issues" with the LNP as you suggest, but I am critical of our PM for the many reasons I have already stated - he has done too little too late.
THE WHO says the most important thing we can do is "test, test, test," but we are not, as we don't have enough test kits.

People like you, and there are a lot of people like you in the public, do nothing but move from one issue to another with a constant stream of vitriol and offer absolutely nothing and have certainly done jack to really help advance proper change.

That is completely untrue. The nastiness is from you because your OP to this thread was ill founded and you have continued to lie about your stance.

You are clearly so arrogant that your own self belief think you know better than the current government. So I ask, how has your pathetic political career gone?

First, I have posted in many threads and offered ideas that have worked in other countries. The issue here is why they are being put to one side by our government. Why aren't the military (or private sector) building dedicated COVID-19 field hospitals so that our normal hospital system can operate as usual? That worked exceptionally well in Wuhan where no new cases are now being reported, after having been the epicentre just 2 months ago.

I guess it’s just easier to remain a troll spewing force vitriol instead of rolling up your sleeves to make a genuine difference to the public good.

I call out bad posts and say exactly why, often in forensic detail. Yours was grossly deficient and you have followed it up with a stream of petty personal insults instead of addressing the points I made in relation to your claims.
I also made the point that we need federal legislation to allow "emergency powers" to be exercised at a national level. Is that on the table? No, we still have states doing their own thing; in NSW poorly and in Tassie, well.

 

[MovingAverage]

I am critical because I have noted what has been done to be successful, yet even now we have schools open. This is not a benefit of hindsight. And I also said before most people that 2 key safety nets were debt relief and a living wage - you will find my posts date stamped. I have zero "personal issues" with the LNP as you suggest, but I am critical of our PM for the many reasons I have already stated - he has done too little too late.
THE WHO says the most important thing we can do is "test, test, test," but we are not, as we don't have enough test kits.
That is completely untrue. The nastiness is from you because your OP to this thread was ill founded and you have continued to lie about your stance.
First, I have posted in many threads and offered ideas that have worked in other countries. The issue here is why they are being put to one side by our government. Why aren't the military (or private sector) building dedicated COVID-19 field hospitals so that our normal hospital system can operate as usual? That worked exceptionally well in Wuhan where no new cases are now being reported, after having been the epicentre just 2 months ago.
I call out bad posts and say exactly why, often in forensic detail. Yours was grossly deficient and you have followed it up with a stream of petty personal insults instead of addressing the points I made in relation to your claims.
I also made the point that we need federal legislation to allow "emergency powers" to be exercised at a national level. Is that on the table? No, we still have states doing their own thing; in NSW poorly and in Tassie, well.

oh quick...context switch...play the victim card

 

[rederob]

oh quick...context switch...play the victim card

Seriously?
I have been proactive posting ideas on COVID-19 and attaching informative links.
You simply were unable to find a quote from the PM and on that basis labelled an article from the ABC as outrageous and sensationalism.
What is presently outrageous is that we can contemplate school children as the active carriers of COVID-19 without any testing whatsoever. This is the complete opposite of what has happened in Singapore and why they at least stand some chance of ensuring there is no spread.

 

[qldfrog]

Definitely agreed.

I think everyone, both online and in the physical world, needs to bear in mind at all times that many people will be under very considerable mental stress with all this.

Risk of death is the most obvious and drastic one.

Many will lose large amounts of money. That's less drastic than death but still a problem if it turns someone's reasonable retirement into a meager existence for the next 20 years or means that their dream of buying a house or seeing the world is now shattered. It's a major blow to them both practically and psychologically.

Many will see businesses fail or lose their employment. Some will in practice never recover due to lack of capital and inability to gain new employment due to especially age. Plenty ended up like that during previous recessions so odds are this'll be at least as bad.

That virtually everyone will have at least the next 6 months disrupted and not as they'd intended is another.

At a broader level, the probable loss of various "iconic" businesses and perhaps individuals (death) will bring a sense of doom and gloom to many. It only needs some business that everyone's been a customer of or at least knows of and that seemed "too big to fail" to actually fail and that brings a sense of gloom to everyone. Likewise if someone well known and liked passes away due to the virus.

So my thought is, in short, let's look after each other and bear in mind that others we meet, either online or off, may well be under incredible stress at the present time.

So my comment on anger coming after the fear
Anger about others, about own decisions etc
Losing 15 to 30pc of your wealth, you need an escape goat.

 

[Smurf1976]

So my comment on anger coming after the fear
Anger about others, about own decisions etc
Losing 15 to 30pc of your wealth, you need an escape goat.

I'll simply say that at a whole of society level I do have a lot of concern about where that anger ends up being directed.

It's going to be a massive force at some point. I maintain my view that it has the potential to end seriously badly in that regard so my hope is it doesn't. Reality though is that mass unemployment and other losses with an identified trigger is a dangerous combination.

 

[basilio]

I am critical because I have noted what has been done to be successful, yet even now we have schools open. This is not a benefit of hindsight. And I also said before most people that 2 key safety nets were debt relief and a living wage - you will find my posts date stamped. I have zero "personal issues" with the LNP as you suggest, but I am critical of our PM for the many reasons I have already stated - he has done too little too late.
THE WHO says the most important thing we can do is "test, test, test," but we are not, as we don't have enough test kits.
That is completely untrue. The nastiness is from you because your OP to this thread was ill founded and you have continued to lie about your stance.
First, I have posted in many threads and offered ideas that have worked in other countries. The issue here is why they are being put to one side by our government. Why aren't the military (or private sector) building dedicated COVID-19 field hospitals so that our normal hospital system can operate as usual? That worked exceptionally well in Wuhan where no new cases are now being reported, after having been the epicentre just 2 months ago.
I call out bad posts and say exactly why, often in forensic detail. Yours was grossly deficient and you have followed it up with a stream of petty personal insults instead of addressing the points I made in relation to your claims.
I also made the point that we need federal legislation to allow "emergency powers" to be exercised at a national level. Is that on the table? No, we still have states doing their own thing; in NSW poorly and in Tassie, well.

Well, well worth re reading.
RedRobs observations about what has been successfully done in other countries to actively deal with containing the virus and treating its effect are very pertinent.

As far as your grandson in hospital. Absolute bummer. But frankly totally understandable in the current situation. Really hope it all works out well. Certainly highlights the need for drastically expanded medical facilities to deal with expected increases in suspected cases and their treatment.

And yes this should have been done from mid-late January onwards. There was plenty of evidence of how bad things were in China and where this could easily go with us.

Currently we need the government to move like hell on multiple fronts and demand industry response to producing the medical requirements we need

We need a total community response to locking down as far as possible and preventing this virus from spreading.
And we need to support each other to make these things happen.